Four out of five kids have gadgets worth £300

Anthony Barey

Four out of five children aged between two and 14 own their own laptop, smartphone, tablet or games console worth an average of £300, according to new data.

And although more than a third of all gadgets will be broken within a year, 70 per cent of parents do not have them insured.

The findings come from a survey of 2,000 parents, which found that 40 per cent of all children’s gadgets are quickly broken with an average £150 cost of repair.

Three quarters of the respondents admitted to not having the items insured and replacing the items rather than having them repaired when they were broken.

When it comes to the most popular gadgets,the survey by insurance company ProtectYourBubble.com, revealed that 80 per cent of children have their own tablet, with 58 per cent owning a games console.

More than half have their own smartphone, 39 per cent have a laptop, with just 16 per cent owning a PC.

Stephen Ebbett, chief digital officer at Protect Your Bubble said “As technology becomes more user-friendly, it becomes more accessible to younger children, however, they’re not necessarily any more durable.

“Unfortunately, our research suggests that the majority of Brits only remember to insure the gadgets they use regularly meaning they’re neglecting to insure the tech they have bought for their children.”

The research also found that while three quarters of parents admit that they allow their child to have gadgets in their bedroom, a shocking 14 per cent say they have no internet safety features installed on their kid’s devices.

Despite the lack of safety on the gadgets, the survey showed that the average age for a child’s first tablet is seven, and the average age for a first smartphone is 10.

The average child is allowed to spend 2.21 hours on their gadgets every day, and 13 per cent of parents don’t set a time limit for their kids.